Comprehensive, Randomized Double Blind Study Finds Oats Safe for Children with Celiac Disease

Gut. 2004 May;53(5):649-654

Celiac.com Sponsor (A12):
A multi-center Swedish study involving eight separate pediatric clinics looked at 116 children with newly diagnosed celiac disease. The group was randomized into two groups, and one group was given a standard gluten-free diet, while the other was given a standard gluten-free diet that also included oats. The study period was one year, small bowel biopsies were performed at the beginning and end of the study, and serum IgA antigliadin, antiendomysium, and antitissue transglutaminase antibodies were monitored at 0, 3, 6, and 12 months. The median intake of oats for the oat-eating group was 15g per day.

By the end of the study all patients were in clinical remission for celiac disease. Neither group differed significantly from one another with regard to serology markers or small bowel mucosal architecture (including numbers of intraepithelial lymphocytes). Out of the original 116 children 93 finished the study, and significantly more younger patients withdrew from it than older patients.

The researchers conclude: